Ties with China goes beyond the border question: Tharoor

Maintaining that its ties with China "goes beyond the border question", India today said that it wants to strengthen the "positive aspects" of relations with it instead of focusing only on things that still remain to be resolved.

"We should not look at the Chinese relationship only in terms of the border question," Union Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor told reporters here when asked to comment on the present state of bilateral ties.

"Our relationship (with China) goes beyond the border issues. We have trade relations. China has become our largest trading partner, apart from the IT services. We have seen engagements in companies in China, Chinese companies in India. We have seen increase in tourist visa, Indian pilgrims travelling, all of this," he noted.

Tharoor was talking to reporters in Delhi, after a function organised by the International Committee of The Red Cross, International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the Embassy of Switzerland to mark 60th anniversary of the Geneva Convention.

India has "an issue on the border" with China but, "we have also met and talked about it," he said while referring to the ongoing Special Representative level talks to settle the boundary question.